On the issue of any possible alliance with Congress or any another party for the general elections in 2019, Akhikesh Yadav said, "Samajwadi Party is going to strengthen the organization right now, when elections come then we will talk about alliances."

Samajwadi Party leader and former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav slammed the incumbent CM of the state Yogi Adityanath over the issue of deaths in Barabanki due to illicit liquor. Yadav also slammed Adityanath over the issue of child deaths in Gorakhpur hospital last year. Talking to media, the SP leader said, “People have lost lives in Barabanki due to illicit liquor. The government must answer why were lives lost like that? If they know the cause, they must look at themselves in the mirror. Similar incidents had occurred in Etah too,” reports ANI. The former UP CM also said, “Samajwadi Party wants to know what has the government done so far after children lost their lives in Gorakhpur hospital? Did it provide facilities? The CM couldn’t do anything in his own area and is busy painting ‘Izzat Ghar’ to distract people from these issue.” ‘Izzat Ghar’ here refers to an initiative by the UP government to refer to public toilets in a refined way.

On the issue of any possible alliance with Congress or any another party for the general elections in 2019, Akhikesh Yadav said, “Samajwadi Party is going to strengthen the organization right now, when elections come then we will talk about alliances.”

At least three people had died after allegedly consuming spirit in Dewa area of the district today. SP Anil Kumar Singh said that a total of 11 people died in the district in the past 24 hours because of different reasons. Expressing grief over the deaths, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has extended an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh to the relatives of each of the deceased.
According to an official statement released in Barabanki, Adityanath has asked officials to ensure proper treatment to those taken ill and has ordered an inquiry by a joint team of excise and home department officials.
The Indian Express report said that a total of 290 children died in the Baba Raghav Das Medical College in Gorakhpur in the month of August last year. Out of the total number of deaths, 213 died in the neo natal ICU and 77 in the encephalitis ward, said principal P K Singh. There have been 1,250 deaths since January this year at the hospital, especially in encephalitis, infant and children’s wards, he added.